Platen-controlling mechanism for printing-presses.



J. E. RATHBUN. PLATEN CONTRDLLING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES. APPLICATION FILED JAN.29. 1916.

1,188,993. v Patented June 27,1916.

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I. E. RATHBUNJ PLATEN CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES.

APPLICATION FILED IAN-29, I916.

Patented June 27, 1916.

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J. E. RATHBUN. PLATEN CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING PRESSES.

' APPLICATION FILED JAPLZQ, 916. 1,188,993. Patented June 27, 1916.

3 SHEET$SHEET 3- ENE JOHN E. RATHIBUN, OF TOWACO, NEW JERSEY.

PLATEN-CONTROLLING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING-PRESSES.

Application filed January 29, 1916.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN E. RATI'IBUN, :a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Towaco, in the county of Morris and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Platen- Controlling Mechanism for Printing-Presses, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Among the principal objects which the present invention has in view are: to increase the speed of presses of the type to which the mechanism herein shown is applicable; to time the movements of the type of the press bed and platen to permit feeding paper to the press while running at a rapid rate of speed; to steady the position of the platen; to avoid difficult and expensive repairs to the mechanism controlling the relative actions of the platen; to provide means for adjusting the operating elements of the controlling mechanism; and to provide' a mechanism for accomplishing the above stated objects which may be applied on installed printing machines of conventional construction without dismembering said machines. 7

Drawings :Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of portions of a job printing press having applied thereto a platen-controlling mechanism constructed and arranged in accordance with the present invention, the controlling mechanism and parts associated therewith being shown in the inactive disposition thereof; -Fig. 2 is a similar view, the parts being shown in the active position; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken as on the line 33 in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a detail view on an enlarged scale, showing in side elevation one set of the articulated levers, links and rods constituting the pres ent invention; Fig. 5 is a section on an enlarged scale, the section being taken ason the line 55 in Fig. 4:; Fig. 6 is a section on an enlarged scale, the section bein taken as on the line 6 6 in Fig. 4. Figs. to 11 are diagrams for showing the relative actions of the bed and platen.

Description :Theusual practice in printing machines of the type shOWn in the accompanyingdrawings, is to provide a cam shaft and cam thereon connected with the platen frame to rock the same between the paper-receiving position and the printing or impressionposition thereof. The cam Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 2'7, 1916.

Serial No. 75,020.

shaft and cam carried thereby, as well as the connecting arm and roller connected with the said cam, are for convenience s0 placed in the general structure of the printing machine that when the wear develops to a degree where it becomes necessary to remove or repair the parts, the work involved 1s difficult and costly. This work generally consists in re-milling or machining the cam slot of the cam, and the supplying of a new wheel or roller for fitting said slot. After a number of repairs, the cam wheel becomes involved and the necessity arises for removing the same to be replaced by a new element. During the interval between the first appearance of wear and the final recognition of the necessity to make the repair, the machinery is subjected to an unnecessary amount of injurious vibration or pounding.

The employment of the cam and conneci ns above referred to has arisen to meet the demand for a variation in the move ment of the platen, with relation to the operations performed thereon by other parts of the mechanism of the press, and to facilitate the manual operations in connection therewith;

Vith the purpose of avoiding the wear and the difficulties incident thereto above recited, some manufacturers have abandoned the cam-controlling mechanisms and have substituted therefor a mechanism for rocking the platen. The objection to this mechanism for the platen has been that the dwell or period of relative inaction. or slowed action during which the pressman places the paper in position, has been nearly, if not entirely, dis ensed with. From this has arisen a di iculty that much of the work performed by presses so constructed is imperfect, due to the fact that the pressman is not given time to feed the machine with due accuracy.

It is the special purpose of the present invention to overcome the difliculties arising from the wear of the controlling mechanism and to provide the dwells in the operation of the platen, to permit greateraccuracy of feed of the paper and to provide a dwell locking the platen.

As seen in the drawings, the bed frame 11 is pivotally mounted on the shaft 12, which has bearings in. the sides 13 of the conventional press. The bed frame ll is operatively connected to the driven shaft 14 of the printing press and to the gear wheel 15' mounted thereon, by connecting rods 16.

The parts mentioned are conventional in form and construction, as is the platen 17, rocking shaft 18 therefor, and the rocker 19 and bracket 20 for holding immovable the said rocker when rocked to the printing position. The locking frame 21, which, as shown best in Fig. 2 of the drawings, passes under the end of the rocker 19, is likewise conventional and is operated in timed relation to the movement of the shaft 18 and rocker 19 by mechanism of the usual construction and arrangement and not shown herein.

In the preferred operation of printing presses above noted, it is desired that the platen 17 shall remain immovable when in both the positions shown in Fig. 1 and in Fig. 2 of the drawings, independent of the movement of the bed 11. To this end the present mechanism employs an irregularly shaped lever 22. One end of said lever is operatively connected by a swivel block 23 and a rod 24, with the rocker 19. The lever 22 is mounted on, to rock, a pivot shaft 25, and the opposite arm of the lever 22 is op- I eratively connected to the bed 11 by means of a link 26 and bracket 27.

The lever 22 is proportioned and shaped to move the pivotal connections at the ends thereof in the'paths indicated by the arrows a and Z), shown best in Figs. 1, 2 and 4 of the drawings. This construction provides for such a disposition of the pivotal connection between the lever 22 and the rod 24, that during the period approaching the end of the rock of the said lever coincident with the impression movement of the bed, said pivotal connection passes through a plane coincident with the center of the pivot pin 28 of the shaft 24 and the pivot shaft 25 of the lever 22. This arrangement permits the platen 17 to remain quiet when pressure is applied thereto by the bed 11. Also it will be seen that as the pivotal connection of the rod 16 and the wheel 15 passes the dead center preliminary to retracting the bed 11, and during the initial portion of the retraction of said bed, the lever 22 is rocking in correspondence with the operation of the bed to move the pivotalconnection between the block 23 and the lever 22 backward through the plane above mentioned as ooincident with the centers of the shaft 25 and pins 28. The motion imparted to the rocker 19 and platen 17 being relatively negligible, the movement of the lever 22 above described, is preceded by the initiation of the movement of the bed 11.

As seen in the diagrams shown in Figs. 7 to 11, inclusive, of the drawings, the move ments of the bed 11 and the platen 17 vary in their relation to each other. It will be understood that the swing of the bed from the position shown in the diagram, Fig. 7, or in Fig. 1, of the drawings, has gradually increased to the middle of the throw and diminished to stop at the end of the throw. The travel of the platen 17, however, from the position shown in Fig. 1 to that shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, is inaugurated and completed in a shorter interval of time, and corresponds with a fraction only of the throw of the bed 11. Thus by reference to the said diagrams, it will be seen that the bed 11 moves from the position outlined in F ig. 7 of the drawings, to the position outlined in Fig. 8, prior to the inauguration of movement of the platen 17. It will also be observed that the said platen from this position moves to its final position as shown in Figs. 10 and 2, prior to the completion of the final movement of the bed 11, which completes its movement during the period of rest in which the platen 17 is held. This period is coincident with the operation above described, where the pivotal conn ction between the rod 24 and the lever22 passes the plane coincident with the pins 28 and the center of the shaft 25.

When retracing the operation justabove described, it will be seen that the platen 17 does not move from the impression position shown in Figs. 11 and 10, until the bed 11 has moved backward therefrom to the position shown in Fig. 10. Further, it will be observed that while the bed 11 is traveling to the position shown in Fig. 8, the platen 17 has assumed its receiving position shown in Fig. 8, where it remains during the backward movement of the bed 11 from the position shown in Fig. 8 to the position shown in Fig. 7, and until the return of the said bed to the position shown in Fig. 8. This dwell provides for the operator adjusting the paper on the platen. It will be observed that failure to move the platen 17,'is due to the fact that the pivotal connections or pins 29 and 30 connecting the link 26 with the bracket 27 and the lever 22, pass through a plane coincident with the centers of the said pins and the shaft 12.

As seen best in Figs. 4 and 6 of the draw ings, the rod 24 has a threaded section 38 which extends through a perforated end 31 of the swivel block 28. At opposite sides of the end 31 are nuts 32 and 33. By adjusting the nuts 82 and 33, the rod 24 and lever 22 may be adjusted to the operating conditions of the platen and bed. By this means any wear of the parts of the controlling mechanism may be compensated for.

As shown in Fig. 5, the pins 29 and 30 have reduced ends which are held by the keeper 34 and the bracket 27. The pin 35 connecting the block 23 and lever 22 is similarly constructed and held in operating position by the keeper 36. The screws for holding the keeper 35 are countersunk While the keeper 34 and bracket 27 are preferably fastened by Wrench-headed bolts 37. It Will be understood that though this form of assemblage is preferred, the claims are not intended to be limited thereto.

Claims:

1. A printing press having, in combination, a rocking platen; a reciprocating bed; and articulated connecting means operatively uniting said platen and bed for rocking said platen to the full extent of its movement during a fraction of the time consumed in the movement of said bed, said means embodying a rocking member definitely pivoted and pivotally connected at opposite sides of its point of pivot with said bed and said platen by links, said links being pivoted at both ends thereof and adapt ed for alinement with the pivot point of said rocking member and the pivotal connections of said rocking member and said links, whereby the pivotal connections of each of said links and said rocking member approximate the planes incorporating the centers of the pivots of said links and said rocking member.

2. A printing press having, in combination, a rocking platen; a reciprocating bed; and articulated connecting means opera tively uniting said platen and bed for rocking said platen to the full extent of its movement during a fraction of the time consumed in the movement of said bed, said means embodying a rocking member definitely pivoted and pivotally connected at opposite sides of its point of pivot with said bed and said platen by links, said links being pivoted at both ends thereof and adapted for alinement with the pivot point of said rocking member and the pivotal connections of said rocking member and said links, whereby the pivotal connections of each of said links and said rocking member approximate the planes incorporating the centers of the pivots of said links and said rocking member, said links and said members being arranged so that the approximation of the pivotal connection of said rocking member with one of said links alternates With the pivotal connection of said rocking member with the other of said links.

3. A printing press having, in combination, a rocking platen; a reciprocating bed; and articulated connecting means operatively uniting said platen and bed for rocking said platen to the full extent of its movement during a fraction of the time consumed in the movement of said bed, said means embodying a rocking member definitely pivoted and pivotally connected at opposite sides of its point of pivot with said. bed and said platen by links, said links being pivoted at both ends thereof and adapted for alinement with the pivot point of said rocking member and the pivotal connections of said rocking member and said links, whereby the pivotal connections of each of said links and said rocking member approximate the planes incorporating the centers of the pivots of said links and said rocking member, said links and said member being so arranged that the approximation of the pivotal connection of said rocking member with one of said links alternates with the pivotal connection of said rocking member with the other of said links, and said approximations of said links and member coinciding with the opposite end of the movement of said bed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

JOHN E. RATHBUN.

\Vitnesses:

E. H. MURRDOOK, G. H. EMSLIE.

Gobies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents,

4 Washington, D. G." 

